The present invention relates to novel chiral intermediates useful for the synthesis of optically active prostaglandins.
15-Hydroxy-16-aryloxy-.omega.-tetranorprostaglandins are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,087,604 and 4,157,341. As described therein, the synthesis of such compounds has included the reaction of an appropriate known 2-[5.alpha.-hydroxy-2.beta.-formylcyclopent-1.alpha.-yl]acetic acid .gamma.-lactone derivative (see Corey et al., J.A.C.S. 93, 1491 (1971); Tetrahedron Letters, 1971, 4753) with an appropriate dialkyl 2-ketophosphonate, reduction of the keto group to hydroxy and separation of the optical isomers of the resulting racemic mixture, followed by subsequent reaction steps to incorporate the upper prostaglandin side chain. The separation of the optical isomers in such a synthesis by chromatographic or other conventional methods is particularly difficult and there has been a need for other methods of synthesis to give the desired 15-R-hydroxy configuration in the resulting prostaglandin without the need for such separation method.